Magic King Ranma: The Saotome Family arrives. [Episode 107421]

Genma and Ranma had been camping when they summoned Balhamut and She sent the Saotome family onto Ranma’s new kingdom.   They arrived wearing their gi and fully equipped to survive on their own until the abandoned palace was up and running.   On the other hand, Nodoka arrived covered in suds, water and little else.

Don’t you just hate how a summoning always happens when you’re in the shower?

At the sudden cessation of running water, and with her eyes closed to keep out the soapy rinse, her hands quested blindly for the taps.   Instead they encountered Genma’s broad chest and the conclusion that a pervert had crept into the shower to molest her made her hot, bothered, and extremely embarrassed.

This was immediately followed by Genma taking an unplanned swim in the lake via the kapowie express.

At the sound of a large body hitting a large body of water, instead of the expected wall, Nodoka stopped blushing and squealing, to brush the suds from her eyes and peer around.   “What in the world?” she demanded, blinking in surprise as much from the light.   They had appeared on the middle of a bridge spanning from the shore of a large lake, to an islet upon which stood a faerie tale castle, complete with turrets and towers and looking … rather time-worn and gritty really.

It was still standing remarkably strong and whole.   It just looked like it was about to fall to ruin at any moment.

“Ahem!   Er, greetings,” coughed a voice thickly accented with fluster.   “Welcome to Caer Palladium lords and, er, lady.   We have been expecting, er, you?”   The voice trailed off uncertainly.   The voice belonged to what looked a lot like a small humanoid gecko, one of several approaching from the gathering at the castle gates.   “Er, boss,” it whined at Ranma, “if you’d open the big door we can find fresh clothes for you all in the royal apartments and get you ready for the big feast.”

“Did someone mention a feast!?” Genma exclaimed, impressing the welcoming committee by walking on water and flying up the side of the bridge.   They relaxed and decided that, obviously, he was a powerful wizard merely disguised as wandering hermit while escorting the noble prince, who’d been raised by simple peasants, to his birthright, as happened all the time in stories.

“Genma!?” cried the strident voice of icy doom.

“Er, hello, wife,” Genma greeted with something less than absolute enthusiasm.   “Fancy meeting you here. … Er, what are you doing here?” (And undressed like that too.   Which reminds me, why did I ever leave her?)

“I have no idea!” Nodoka explained, though he realised after a moment that she was answering his spoken question.   “I was taking a shower when, all of a sudden, I was here with these strange creatures, and you, and…”   She pause, blinked vacantly for a few seconds, then squealed excitedly, “RANMA!!!   Oh, Ranma-kun, mumbsy wumbsy has missed you so much, my little manly man!   Come here and give mumbsy a big kissy wissy.”

Genma snapped his fingers.   (Oh, tha’s right.   That’s why!   She’s a complete loon.)

---

Nodoka felt much better to have something to wear.   In fact she was dressed like a princess; which was fitting if the strange creatures who ran the palace were to believed.   She looked proudly at where her princly son sat figetting in his new finery, and over where her husband inhalled food by the double mouthful.   Somehow inheriting a castle full of strange magical beasts was kind of manly (and she had made sure that the castle was built for humans).

Ranma was happy.   He was reunited with his mommy, and had lots of funny new friends, and they all had a really big house to stay in, even if it did need a little polishing.

One of the creatures was retelling the tale of the little kingdom while strumming his lute. “… One young boss, the last boss, was not happy to leave good enough alone.   This is a very nice kingdom, but it is pretty small and he wanted to see more.   He wanted to explore the worlds beyond the borders, of which we’ve only heard in tales.   The wise kobold advisors told the old boss to stay, but his greedy biggun advisors said that he was the boss and could do whatever he liked.   The boss didn’t listen to his wise kobold advisors, locked up the palace so none could enter, and walked across the border into the mists and was never, ever, ever seen again.”

“For a time, the greedy biggun advisors were happy, and named themselves Lords of the Land and vied among themselves for the boss’ chair.   But the boss’ chair would accept none of them and, without a boss, the land began to die, the pallace grew tarnished, and the kobolds had to hide from the mean biggun knights with their sword and spears, with the stabbing, and the poking, and the hurting.  It was a bad time for all!   But we kobolds knew that one day a new boss would return, and there would be much wailing and gnashing of teeth among the greedy bigguns who stole the land.”

“And now along comes Ranma!   Huzzah for the new boss!”

“Huzzah!” cheered the rest of the kobolds.

“Num, num, num,’ said Genma around a mouthful of roast boar.   “Burp!   That’s mighty interesting story.   But if you needed Ranma to open the gates to the pallace, how did you get in to cook all this?   Not that I’m complaining.   Looks like you’ve been here a while too, though.”

“Old boss lock up pallace pretty good with big magic, Mister Boss’ Father Sir,” Deekin explained proudly.   “None could enter the gates for a hun'ert years or more.   But we kobolds are pretty smart.   We used the old servants’ entrance.   No one else think to try.   Deekin think maybe they nots remember it.”

“In any case, what do we do now?” Nodoka asked.   ”Somehow I don't think these ‘greedy bigguns’ are going to sit idle while you crown my Ranma-kun king.   Not if they want the throne and realise that the door to the pallace is now unlocked.”

“Missus Naked Lady Type Person has a good point,” another kobold agreed, and Nodoka flushed.   Were they ever going to let her live that down?   “We kobolds knowsa all about making lotsa nasty traps and stuff, but if they brings in many knights in shiny armoires and things, we'sa not gonna stop them.   We’sa in for big hurting!"

“Meepo is right,” Deekin agreed, “but Deekin think maybe we get help from others.   We kobolds not only ones pushed out of their lands when times get tough.   Others not listen to kobolds though, but maybe they listens to da boss?”

“Sounds good,” Ranma agreed.   “Who’re we gonna call?”